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What Are The Withdrawal Symptoms While Tapering Off Toprol?

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Posted on Thu, 4 Jun 2015
Question: HAVE BEEN TAPERING TOPROL PROBABLY TOO FAST. HEAD GOES IN AND OUT LIKE A CONCERTINA. NO ADVICE ON TAPERING HAS BEEN RECEIVED BUT COULD I BE IN DANGER OF PASSING OUT? IS THAT WHAT LOOKING THROUGH THE WRONG END OF A TELESCOPE IN AND OUT COULD BE? THANKS.

YYYY@YYYY
doctor
Answered by Dr. Dr. Rovena (2 hours later)
Brief Answer:
detailed below.

Detailed Answer:
Hello.

Welcome to Healthcare Magic.

It is very important to do a gradual reduction of the dose of a b-blocker in a course of few weeks.
The best thing is to taper off the drug under the supervision of your treating doctor and following his recommendation.The doctor will decide the schedule of the process of tapering off Metoprolol (Toprol) considering the dose you take, your actual medical condition,associated condition,in order to prevent adverse effects.
The symptoms of tapering off a b-blocker too quickly are :increase of heart rate,high blood pressure, anxiety,sweating etc.
The risk of passing out is small ,because it doesn't cause low blood pressure but if your heart rate is very high ,passing out can happen.
You should start with a gradual reduction on the dose.Start with reduction of one quarter of the dose (25%) for 1 week.If you don't have major symptoms like high heart rate,high blood pressure etc, you can reduce it to half dose (50%) and take it for 1 week and so on until stopping it.
So if you were taking 50 mg Toprol a day ,you can divide the tablet to 4 parts and take 3 (37.5 mg).Continue it for 1 week.If you have symptoms you can continue it longer.
The next week take half tablet (25 mg) and continue for 1 week or longer (according to your physical condition).
The next week take 1/4 of the tablet (12.5 mg) and if you don't have any symptom after a week ,stop taking it.
If you have any major problem like very high heart rate,high blood pressure,consult your doctor right away.

I again would suggest to consult your physician so you can taper off Toprolol under his supervision.Your doctor will guide you in this process.

I hope it helps.
Let me know if you need further help.

Kind regards,
Dr.Rovena Murati
Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
doctor
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Follow up: Dr. Dr. Rovena (1 hour later)
Thank you Dr. Murati. I have to say that's more than I get from my doc or pharm. Guess it's because I'm so old and I wouldn't understand...indeed I do and I haven't done as you say because I didn't know to do that way. I'm left unanswered as to why I'm fading in and out. Any thoughts? M.J. Deming
doctor
Answered by Dr. Dr. Rovena (1 hour later)
Brief Answer:
detailed below.

Detailed Answer:
Hello.

As I said ,typical symptoms of A b-blocker withdrawal are rapid heartbeats ,high blood pressure,chest pain due to heart attack ,anxiety ,tremor etc.
A possible cause of your symptoms might be the increased heart rate.A rapid heart rate is not as effective in pumping blood in circulation.This can cause problems with the oxygen supply of the brain ,causing these episodes of fading in and out.
The symptoms depends form your medical condition ,the associated conditions that you might have.

I would suggest to discuss this with your doctor and if it is necessary to stop taking Toprol, to do a gradual tapering off.

Take care.
Dr.Rovena
Note: For more detailed guidance, please consult an Internal Medicine Specialist, with your latest reports. Click here..

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
doctor
Answered by
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Dr. Dr. Rovena

General & Family Physician

Practicing since :2013

Answered : 1243 Questions

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What Are The Withdrawal Symptoms While Tapering Off Toprol?

Brief Answer: detailed below. Detailed Answer: Hello. Welcome to Healthcare Magic. It is very important to do a gradual reduction of the dose of a b-blocker in a course of few weeks. The best thing is to taper off the drug under the supervision of your treating doctor and following his recommendation.The doctor will decide the schedule of the process of tapering off Metoprolol (Toprol) considering the dose you take, your actual medical condition,associated condition,in order to prevent adverse effects. The symptoms of tapering off a b-blocker too quickly are :increase of heart rate,high blood pressure, anxiety,sweating etc. The risk of passing out is small ,because it doesn't cause low blood pressure but if your heart rate is very high ,passing out can happen. You should start with a gradual reduction on the dose.Start with reduction of one quarter of the dose (25%) for 1 week.If you don't have major symptoms like high heart rate,high blood pressure etc, you can reduce it to half dose (50%) and take it for 1 week and so on until stopping it. So if you were taking 50 mg Toprol a day ,you can divide the tablet to 4 parts and take 3 (37.5 mg).Continue it for 1 week.If you have symptoms you can continue it longer. The next week take half tablet (25 mg) and continue for 1 week or longer (according to your physical condition). The next week take 1/4 of the tablet (12.5 mg) and if you don't have any symptom after a week ,stop taking it. If you have any major problem like very high heart rate,high blood pressure,consult your doctor right away. I again would suggest to consult your physician so you can taper off Toprolol under his supervision.Your doctor will guide you in this process. I hope it helps. Let me know if you need further help. Kind regards, Dr.Rovena Murati